Smith

The poor state of the Montego Bay resident Magistrate's Court has been highlighted by president of the City's chamber of commerce, Lloyd B. Smith, who is seeking support to have the facility rehabilitated.

Addressing the Independence Day Civic Ceremony in Montego Bay, St James, yesterday, Smith said the condition of the courthouse was a disgrace and the chamber was seeking partnerships with the movers and shakers of the city to lobby for repairs.

"The Montego courthouse is a disgrace; justice should not be dispensed in such a place and I sincerely hope that all the lay magistrate's here, the councillors, the members of parliament and others will lobby to ensure that Montego Bay gets a decent courthouse," he said.

Smith said because of the limited resources with which court officials work, certain matters could not be handled at the Montego Bay facility, which meant residents had to travel to Kingston.

Antiquated system

"Montego Bay is a city; we ought not to have so many of our citizens have to go all the way to Kingston and to wait for up to five years to get justice ... because of the antiquated system existing in Montego Bay," he said.

The chamber president said although the people looking on from the outside may see a wonderful picture of the tourism mecca, Montego Bay in particular and St James in general is haemorrhaging from a number of ills.

Among the black spots affecting the western city are crime and poverty.

In December of last year, Attorney General and Justice Minister Senator Dorothy Lightbourne toured the Montego Resident Magistrate's Court and the Family Court and aired her dissatisfaction with the state of the facilities.

According to her, plans were far advanced for the construction of a new court building that would house not just the Resident Magistrate's Court, Gun Court and Civil Court, but would also include the Family Court, which currently operates on leased property. However, there have been problems in acquiring a five-acre property in St James to carry out the plans.